Dam construction



March 24, 1931. s 7 1,797,517

DAM CONSTRUCTION Filed Sept. 4, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l George Jifnchuk Inventor Attorney March 24, 1931. slMCHUK 1,797,517

DAM CONSTRUCTI ON Filed Sept. 4, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Geo/"9e chuk Inventor A liar neg Patented Mar. 24, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFIcf GEORGE smonux, or MEDICAL LAKE,- w sHING'roN, nssrenon or ONE-HALF TO RAY I). cow-EN, F SPOKANE, wAsHINGTon,

DAM o'oivsreuorron Application filed September 4, 1928. Serial No. 303,807.

My present invention relates to an improved dam construction which is especially designed for use in impounding or storing water where a h1gh water level or head is to to take care of flood conditions should they occur.

Means are provided withinthe interior construction of the dam for use as wa steways or outlets for water that mayseep through the structure of the dam, and seepage around the ends of the dam is provided against, thus eliminating danger of eroding or undermining the dam at its sides or at its bottom.

In carrying out my invention I utilize a curved or approximately semi-circular wall for the main portion of the dam in combination with an oppositely curved or approximately semi-circular wall in the form of an up-stream apron, and these parts at the crest of the dam and at a common, tangential, point on the exterior of thetwo semi-circular walls, are joined, bridged, or arched by masonry work. The central bridge or arch joining the oppositely curved walls of the dam provides side spaces that are filled with rubble stone or other loose material as gravel and this formation of the dam and filling material are utilized in strengthening the structure as well as in disposing of seepage.

The invention consists in certain novel combinations and arrangements of parts as will hereinafter be more fully set forth and claimed. In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated one complete example of the physical embodiment of my invention wherein the parts are combined and arranged according to the best mode I have thusfar devised for the practical application of the principles of my invention.

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a dam structure embodying my invention, parts being broken away and indicated by dotted lines for convenience of illustration.

Figure 2 is a sectional view at line 22 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged detail sectional view showing the means for anchoring the ends of the diagonally extending or crossed stress bars constructed within the work.

Figure 4: is a vertical sectionalview at line ll' of Figure 1 looking toward the upstream side of the dam.

, Figure 5 is a sectional view at line 5-5 of Figure 1 looking toward the downstream side of the dam.

Figure 6 is a transverse vertical sectional vi'ewat the center of the structure atline 6-6 of Figure 1.

Figure 7 7 the end construction of one ofthe diagonal or crossed stress bars, and curved, horizontal reinforcing rods in the main portion of the y dam structure; V

In Figures2- and 6 thenormal water level or head is indicated at the upstream side of the damv 1, said side being designated as U, while the downstream side of the dam' is designated as D. V The dam 1 is fashioned'of masonry, concrete construction, cement or other suitable material in the form of a curved or semi-circular wall extending across the stream, with a curved, concave slope 2 at its is a detail sectional view showing downstream side,.and vertical or perpendicula r, curved faces at its upstream side. The semi-circular dam is provided with a substantial base 4 of suitable material, and the base merges with a down-stream shelf 5 at the base of the slope'2, said shelf having a declining 1 upper face 6 to carry ofi seepage or water that lea-ks or seepsthrough the dam. Means are provided to prevent seepage or waste of water around the side of the structure at its junce tion with the wallsof the basin, and this seepage of leakage is disposed of through wastee Ways or channels 7 that-extend through the base of the dam, with openings atthe upstream faces 3. These wasteways, as best seen in Figure. 2, decline toward the downstream side of the dam and are in position'to deliver the waste water upon the top, declining surface of the shelf 5, over which the wastewater passes and is thus conveyed from proximity of the damstructure.

r The semi-circular main'wall 1 ofthe darn is reinforced-by means "of; a suitable. number of horizontally disposed, curved, reinforcing rods 8 that conform to the shape of the dam, and adjacent their ends these rods have anchoring plates 9 that are retained in place by nuts 10. In this manner the concrete or masonry work of the semi-circular wall is reinforced to withstand stressesand strains imposed against the dam by the impounded water on the upstream side of the dam, in addition to the strengthening efiect attained by the curvature of the semi-circular wall.

At the upstream, or convex side of the semicircular dam or wall 1, a semi-circular apron 11 is erected of masonry, concrete, or cement, and this apron, as seen in Figure 1 is curved in opposite direction to the curve of the dam 1 and provided with a fiat crest 12' conforming to the crest of the dam 1. The upstream slope 13 of the apron curves across the stream to provide an arch structure that receives the force of the pressure of water against the apron, and the latter is joined, at the center of the stream to the dam 1 by an arch or bridge wall 14. This midstream bridge or arch 14 thus connects the dam and apron as integral structures and provides a joint-crest in themid-stream center of the dam, leaving the sides between the diverging walls of the dam and apron, open, and also leaving open the mid-stream structure of the dam below the bridge 14.

- The apron is fashioned with a base 15, and between the base 15 of the apron and the base 4: of the dam, a floor 16 is formed,with its upper surface. declining downstream and over WhlCl'l any leakage or seepage may How to the waste ways 7. The floor 16 extends substantially across the stream between the oppositely curved dam and apron, and this floor supports a filling of rubble stone,-gravel, or other comparativelyloose filling as 17 that fills the space between the bridge 14 and the floor, and also the lateral U-shaped or V shaped openings between the diverging walls of the apron and dam at opposite sides of the midstream center of the dam. Thus any seepage or leakage through the wings or ends.

of the apron, or over the crest of the wings will find its way through the loose filling material to the floor, and thence pass by'the wasteways out at the downstream side of the dam, over the shelf or ledge 5.

The bases 4 and 15, the ledge or shelf 5 and the floor 16 thus form substantial foundation elements for the whole structure and the curvature of the apron and dam mutually strengthen one another.

To further strengthen and tie together the apron and dam, I provide crossed or diagonally extending tie bars 18 and 19 that ex.- tend from one wing of the apron to an oppos site wing of the main wall, crossing through the arch, and also through the filled space beneath the arch or bridge, and these diagonal bars are anchored'by plates 2Q and nuts:

21 on the threaded ends of the bars, as seen in Figure 3. c

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is- 1. A structure comprising oppositely curved walls and a midstream bridge joining the crest portions of said walls at their exteriors, said walls having bases and a floor joining said bases, asuitable filling beneath the'bridge and at the sides of the bridge between thediverging wings of the walls, and wasteways from said floor to the downstream side of the structure.

2. A structure comprising oppositely curved walls having an integral, midstream joint, a floor between the walls, wasteways from said floor to the downstream side of the structure, a waste shelf at the end of said wasteways, and a suitable filling between the convex portions of said walls.

3. A structure comprising a semi-circular dam having a base, a semi-circular apron having a base, and a floor connecting said bases, a midstream bridge integral with the crest portions of said apron and darn, a stone filling on the floor, wasteways from the floor and a waste-shelf at the downstream side of the dam, and crossed diagonally extending tie bars joining said apron and dam.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

GEORGE SIMGHUK. 

